North Korean Hackers Responsible for 61% of All Crypto Thefts in 2024, Analysis Finds

North Korean (DPRK) hackers were responsible for 61 percent of the total amount of cryptocurrency stolen in 2024, according to a report from Chainalysis that underlines just how much these types of thefts have increased. 

If we only look at the news, cryptocurrency thefts have increased dramatically in the past couple of years. Hardly a week goes by without a security incident involving various protocols, mixers, and so on. It’s not just a wholly inaccurate impression – the numbers put forward by Chainalysis not only support it but actually paint a much darker picture. 

The biggest culprit is North Korea, which comes as no surprise because they hold this spot yearly. The analysis shows a 102.88 percent increase in stolen cryptocurrency from 2023 to 2024, reaching $1.34 billion stolen across 47 incidents. In fact, North Korea is responsible for 61 percent of the total amount stolen for the year. 

“Unfortunately, it appears that the DPRK’s crypto attacks are becoming more frequent,” the Analysis found. “Attacks between $50 and $100 million, and those above $100 million occurred far more frequently in 2024 than they did in 2023, suggesting that the DPRK is getting better and faster at massive exploits. This is in stark contrast to the previous two years, during which its exploits more often each yielded profits below $50 million.” 

The problem is not getting more significant year over year, and it looks like DPRK hackers are getting bolder and better, successfully infiltrating crypto and Web3 companies before deploying their attacks. 

The only silver lining is that attacks seem to have tapered off towards the end of the year, especially after July 1. The date is significant because it coincides with Vladimir Putin’s visit to the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang. 

“If we contrast the average daily value lost from DPRK exploits before and after July 1, 2024, we can see a significant decrease in the amount of value stolen,” the researchers said. They also note that the decrease in attacks after that date might be due to other factors, but also note that the timing is conspicuous. 

One thing is clear. North Korea is clearly the main malicious actor operating in the crypto space, and all indications point towards them getting bolder and better each day.